13
Snowflake Lodge
‘Okay, ready everyone? Stand back.’
James took a couple of steps back from the tree, Jessica and Kirsten on either side of him, then lifted a pair of wires in his hands.
‘Ready? Three … two … one—’
‘Merry Christmas!’ they all shouted as the lights on James’s tree came on, brightening the courtyard under a gloomy sky which threatened more snow. Even the cat, Molly, had come to the window to watch.
‘That’s an incredible tree,’ Jessica said, staring up at the stunningly decorated pine tree rising several feet over her head. ‘I could almost believe you built the farm around it.’
James smiled. ‘Not quite. These pines grow pretty quick. The first Christmas after I took over the farm from my parents was quite a somber affair. That spring I broke a hole in the concrete an
